Gohan stared dejectedly at Benny's corpse as he kneeled down in front of where Emerald had set his friend on the ice. Emerald stood the other side of Benny.
"He shouldn't have died!" Gohan exclaimed, his voice rigged with emotion. "It's because of me that he was involved in the first place and I couldn't save him."
Emerald watched the grief-stricken child descend into tears, his high-emotion fuelled words hanging in the air. He shouldn't have to go through this at his tender age, she thought sadly.
She walked round the orphan's lifeless body and kneeled down beside the young hybrid. She wrapped a comforting arm around the boy's slight shoulders.
Gohan looked up into her namesake eyes, tears still caught in the corners of his eyes.
"Why did he have to die?" He asked in a quiet voice.
Emerald stared blankly at the child. How was she meant to answer that? Her eyes suddenly brightened considerably as she suddenly remembered something her late mother had taught her all those years ago.
Gohan stared at the old woman in confusion. His best friend had just died and she was kneeling there beside him with a huge grin on her face. Didn't she have any feelings? He was about to express his feelings in a very angry manner, when Emerald stared talking, slowly and clearly.
"The spell Paradox used to kill Benny is a common one and my own mother came up with a way to counter it." Emerald paused, waiting for Gohan's reaction.
"You mean we can bring Benny back to life?" Gohan asked slowly, his quick mind working over time.
Emerald nodded, smiling. That boy never fails to amaze me, she thought, he's not fazed at all at the prospect of bringing back the dead.
"But how can a counter spell bring back the dead?" Gohan asked, confused.
"Gohan, you really cared about Benny didn't you?" Emerald asked, mysteriously.
The young demi looked even more confused. "Of course! He had become a really great friend." Gohan replied, staring at the aged witch in bewilderment.
"Well then, that's how the counter spell can bring back the dead." Emerald said, earning an extremely confused look from the nine year old.
"What do you mean?" Gohan asked, getting slightly irritated with Emerald's riddles.
"Remarkable. The power you have and yet still you are as impatient as the next child." Emerald mused, staring carefully at the young hybrid.
"Hey! That's not fair!" Gohan shouted, immediately taking offence. "I just lost my best friend and you want me to keep up my unwavering politeness? Can't you see that I'm really upset and would just like to know what exactly you're getting at? His words ended abruptly as he descended into weary sobbing.
Emerald stared sadly at the child again. He had completed his mission, her mission, and yet she was still having to test him. Of course she had to make absolutely sure that he was up for this counter spell. He was the key element in it after all. She wrapped an arm around his shoulders again and spoke gently in his ear.
"It's okay now, Gohan. You've passed my little test. I'm so sorry. I'll explain everything now."
Gohan's choked cries subsided and he stared up into her piercing eyes once more.
"Okay." He encouraged in a quiet whisper.
"The counter spell my mother came up with isn't too difficult but there is a certain thing it needs. That's where you come in, Gohan. Your dedication to your friend is the key element to make this spell work." Emerald paused for breath.
Gohan nodded to show Emerald he was taking her words in.
"I want you to tap into your magical powers I gave you and mix it with your ki. Then you must channel it to me. I will do the rest." Emerald explained, staring intently at the small, worn-out child.
Gohan, weary as he was, concentrated hard on what she told him but still felt confused about it.
"I'm not quite sure what you mean. How am I meant to mix my magical powers with my ki? The magic just happened spontaneously each time, I don't know how to tap into it at will." He explained, a look of hopelessness crossing his features.
Emerald looked taken aback at this comment but was quick to hide it.
"Well let me teach you to find it then. When you tap into your ki, you search for the glowing energy from the very centre of you're being, right?" Emerald said, looking to Gohan to agree with her.
"Right." Gohan agreed, wondering where this was going.
"Well if you look just off the centre of you're being, you will find a different sort of energy. The feel of it is very distinct. It isn't hard to control it once you've found it. Try now." Emerald explained, before nodding to Gohan to begin.
Gohan nodded and sat down in the position Piccolo taught him for meditating; legs crossed, arms crossed, and head slightly bowed. He immediately concentrated on the centre of his being, like he had done the first time he learnt to manipulate his ki. The powerful energy that was his ki beckoned him eagerly but the determined demi-saiyan blocked it out, searching for the unfamiliar magical energy within him.
After what seemed like an eternity, Gohan felt it. The distinct feel of it meant it couldn't be anything else but it, just like Emerald had said. In some ways it felt the same as his ki but there was a distinct difference. He couldn't quite place his finger on it but he had a feeling that if he brought this energy out, rather than glowing yellow like his ki, it would glow an eerie green colour, sort of like Emerald's eyes.
"I found it." Gohan said, coming out of his meditation.
"That's excellent, Gohan. Now you can manipulate it in the same way that you do with your ki." Emerald replied, her positive tone encouraging the demi-saiyan.
Gohan reached inside himself once more and pulled out what looked like a ball of ki but, like he had thought, it glowed green.
"You got it, Gohan." Emerald applauded, her eyes gleaming even greener from the light emitting from Gohan's magical energy. "Now you can mix it with your ki. Just imagine them merging together and that should mix them inside of you."
Gohan nodded and let the green sphere merge back into his body again. He then shut his eyes and his face creased in concentration.
Emerald watched with interest as the young boy was surrounded in a blue aura; the yellow and green of his ki and magical energy merging together.
Emerald worked her own magical energy, surrounding herself in a green aura. She walked forward and brought Gohan's hands to her shoulders, so that they're magic connected.
The blue and green auras clashed together and spiralled outwards in a blinding flash of light, engulfing the lifeless form of the young orphan boy.
The whole area was filled with the blinding light, emitted by the two powerful auras. No shape could be made out for a couple of minutes, until the light faded out.
Emerald collapsed to her knees, next to the already seated form of Gohan. The demi-saiyan was gasping for air, his already low energy being sapped further due to the huge amount of energy required for the spell.
On seeing that the young warrior wasn't in a life-threatening position, the elderly witch shifted her gaze to where Benny lay. The young orphan's cheeks had colour in them once more. The counter spell had worked! Emerald sighed in relief.
Gohan felt completely drained but all they're efforts seemed to have paid off because he could feel his friend's familiar ki once more. He forced himself to his feet, with a great deal of effort, and walked over to where Benny lay.
Benny slowly opened his eyes. This was so strange! He could have sworn he was dead but now it appeared he was back on earth again. Maybe he had been brought back by the Dragonballs. Gohan had told him they could bring people back from the dead. His blurry vision cleared and the onyx eyes of his friend came into view.
Gohan had to mentally stop himself from cheering out loud as Benny opened his eyes. The spell really had worked! He couldn't believe it. He thought the only way to bring back the dead was with the Dragonballs.
"G…Gohan? Is that really you?" Benny's voice was weak and confused.
Gohan beamed. "It sure is pal. How are you feeling?" He asked.
"As good as new." Benny joked, pulling himself up to a sitting position.
Gohan laughed and sat down beside his friend, ignoring the freezing cold ice below him. He set about explaining to Benny what had happened since the orphan had lost consciousness.
"So you and Emerald brought me back to life with a special spell? Cool!" Benny said, after listening to Gohan's explanations.
Gohan beamed again, just happy that Benny was alive again. He then turned to Emerald.
"I just want to know how you got in this time?" The hybrid asked, his interest clearly visible.
Emerald's face crinkled into a smile. "You didn't think Paradox was the only one able to perform a time travel spell did you?" She asked, her face twisted into a mock hurt expression.
Gohan returned her smile. "Oh." He replied before letting out a huge yawn.
"I think we have one very tired demi-saiyan." Emerald said, laughing.
Gohan gave a trademark Son grin and nodded a silent agreement.
"Okay then. I think I better get you back to your mother and father. I'm sure they're worried sick about you." Emerald said, regaining some of her strength.
Gohan's face brightened considerably at this until he suddenly remembered something.
"What about Benny?" He asked, concerned for his friend.
Emerald smiled. "I don't think it would be right for him to go with you, so I've decided he can stay with me. If he would like to of course?" She offered, turning to the shivering ten year old.
Benny looked up, eyes shining at the prospect of a proper home instead of that awful workhouse.
"I would love to." He gushed, his grin so broad it covered the entire length of his lower face.
Gohan, although saddened by the fact that Benny wouldn't be staying with him, gave his friend an encouraging pat on the back.
"You'll do great with Emerald." Gohan said, happy for his friend.
Benny nodded but tears were evident in the corner of his eyes. He grabbed his friend in a tight embrace, causing tears to well in the demi-saiyan's eyes as well.
"I'll never forget you, Gohan." Benny promised, before drawing back from they're embrace.
"Me either." Gohan replied, wiping his eyes with the back of his hand.
Emerald walked over to the two boys. "It's time, Gohan." She said. "Don't worry, I'll take good care of Benny."
Gohan nodded and stood up. He allowed Emerald to touch him lightly on the forehead as she recited her spell. He lifted his hand in a wave to Benny and then the scene in font of him was gone. He found himself back in the sea of time and then he lost consciousness.
Gohan woke up. He felt the feel of soft fabric under his head. He slowly opened his eyes. He thought he must be dreaming, but he saw the soft eyes of his mother and father looking down at him.
"Mom? Dad?" He asked in a weary voice.
Chi-Chi wrapped her arms around her son's shoulders and brought him up into a heartful embrace.
"Oh Gohan! I was so worried about you." She said, tears dropping into his mass of coal, black hair.
Gohan wrapped his arms around his mother's waist and breathed in her familiar scent, making sure this really was happening and wasn't just another one of those dreams.
Mother and son finally drew apart when Goku noisily cleared his throat, impatience getting the better of him.
Gohan gazed up at the man he idolized so much. "How did I get here?" He asked, indicating his bed with a slight nod of his head.
"As soon as I felt your ki again, I instant-translocated to you. You were in a pretty bad shape; torn clothes that looked years out of date, very low on energy and when I touched your hand it was frozen. So I quickly instant-translocated you back here. Your mother then dressed you in your pyjamas and tucked you up in bed. You've been out for a good nine hours." Goku stopped, out of breath from his unusually long speech.
Gohan nodded. "I missed you a lot." He said, gazing at both his parents." With that said, his head hit the pillow once more for some more well earned sleep.
"I guess we can get him to explain where he's been for the past week and a half when he wakes up." Chi-Chi said, smiling at the sleeping form of her safely returned son.
Goku nodded in agreement although was secretly disappointed that he'd have to wait to hear about his small son's adventures.
End chapter.
Well, there you go, that was quite a long chappie wasn't it? I had to bring Benny back because my friend was gonna kill me if I didn't and using the Dragonballs just wasn't original, therefore I took ages explaining a different way to do it. Just in case anyone was wondering. Please r&r and I'll put up the epilogue soon. Ja ne.
